Brick facade work?

[Tnick]

I have a prefab wood burning fireplace (with a gas log) with a brick facade. My wife wants a direct vent gas unit in its place. We've looked at inserts, but because of the size of our prefab unit (primarily the height), we can only put a tiny one in. The fireplace shop's solution is to rip out everything we have (the prefab and all the brick, install a new unit, and put all new brick (or stone) in. I thought it might be better to cut a larger opening in the brick facade, take the old unit out, put a larger unit in, and have a surround custom cut for the gap. We may reface the fireplace, but that'll be down the road a bit.

This requires, I believe, the installation of a new lintel (since the new opening would be taller than the current one). My real question is "is this a diy job for someone who is pretty comfortable with working around the house, but hasn't done any masonry but tile jobs?"

There's nothing structural to the brick facade and it has no functional purpose relating to the fireplace, but the new lintel would be supporting 10 or so courses of brick.

FWIW, we're looking for something that will put heat out (this is in the lower family room of a split level) and that will look nice when we're watching tv or playing with the kids. Am I crazy for thinking about this? Or missing another option?

Thanks for any help you can give. I've attached a picture with some measurements.

View attachment 182951

 

[webby3650]

What inserts were you looking at? That's a very typical size fireplace, should be able to fit a good sized insert in there. I would definitely search for a unit that fits before tearing it all out.

 

[begreen]

Agreed, there doesn't appear to be a need to modify the brickwork. There are many gas insert choices on the market. Moving to gas forum for insert suggestions.